2009 EVENTS
November 20
Performance of Lee-Chin, Singapore violinistOne of Singapore's biggest musical talents, virtuoso violinist Lee-Chin Siow, played a one and half hour concert at the Singapore Embassy in a concert hosted by the Embassy Series. She was accompanied by accomplished pianist Enrique Graf.
The concert at the Embassy was aptly titled "Tribute to America: A Thanksgiving Celebration". More than 130 audience members were treated to a stirring repertoire which included classical pieces by Beethoven and Edvard Grieg, as well as works by American composers William Grant Still and Amy Beach. The concluding rendition of Henryk Wieniawski’s Polonaise Brilliant de Concert brought everyone to their feet in a standing ovation, and Lee-Chin gladly obliged with an encore of the haunting Asian composition Fisherman's Song at Sunset by Li Guo-Quan, which firmly established itself as the crowd favourite.
For more on Lee Chin, visit www.leechin.com
November 3
Reception for the Washington ChorusThe Washington Chorus hosted a reception at the Singapore Embassy to honour Togo West, former Secretary of Army and former Secretary of the Department of Veteran Affairs; and his wife Gail, who was formerly Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force. The couple were saluted for their tremendous contributions to the civic and cultural life of Washington. The 80 reception guests, which included Singapore Ambassador Chan Heng Chee and Knight Kiplinger, Chairman Emeritus of the Board of Trustees of the Chorus, were serenaded by an exquisite musical selection performed by soprano Othalie Graham and baritone Tad Czyzewski, which was coordinated by new music director Julian Wachner.
September 23
Dinner with Congressman Howard BermanThe Singapore Embassy hosted an Asian Ambassadors' dinner organised by the Asia Foundation and featuring Congressman Howard Berman as its speaker. A long-serving member of the House representing the 28th District of California, Congressman Berman chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee and has been a major voice in debates on US foreign policy. More than 60 distinguished guests attended the dinner, including Mr William L. Ball, III, former U.S. Secretary of the Navy, and were treated to a wide-ranging and lively discussion on foreign policy issues and Asia with Congressman Berman. The dinner also included remarks by President Douglas Bereuter of the Asia Foundation and Singapore Ambassador Chan Heng Chee.
July 30
Singapore's 44th National Day and 41st Armed Forces Day ReceptionThe Singapore Embassy hosted a reception as a joint celebration of both Singapore's 44th National Day and 41st Singapore Armed Forces Day. In her remarks, Ambassador Chan Heng Chee emphasised that Singapore’s economic prospects remained attractive, with continued strong investor confidence and a special emphasis on conservation and energy efficiency amongst other factors. Singapore is also the chairman of APEC this year and looked forward to welcome President Obama for the Economic Leaders’ Meeting in November, as well as to discuss with APEC economies on emerging from the economic recession.
The guest-of-honour for the evening, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and the Pacific Affairs, Kurt Campbell, toasted to Singapore’s National Day with remarks noting the strength and closeness of its bilateral relations with the U.S. Other notable guests included General James N. Mattis, Supreme Allied Commander Transformation/ Commander, U.S. Joint Forces Command, Ex-Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez and ex-Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. They joined about 430 other guests including representatives from the U.S. administration, congressional staffers, the business communities, the diplomatic corps and media representatives in Washington DC.
June 4
Cast Supper of the Washington National Opera's TurandotFive students of the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University performed lovely classical recitals to an audience of about 100 at the Embassy. The performers included Hsiao-Yang Lin and KyooHye Hannah Lim on piano, Rui Du on violin, Young Eun Lee on cello and soprano Danya Katok. The Peabody Conservatory has a partnership agreement with the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music at the National University of Singapore.
April 30
Recital by Students of Peabody ConservatoryFive students of the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University performed lovely classical recitals to an audience of about 100 at the Embassy. The performers included Hsiao-Yang Lin and KyooHye Hannah Lim on piano, Rui Du on violin, Young Eun Lee on cello and soprano Danya Katok. The Peabody Conservatory has a partnership agreement with the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music at the National University of Singapore.
April 22
Stimson’s 20th – A Tribute to Thomas PickeringThe Stimson Center, a Washington-based think-tank honoured Ambassador Tom Pickering in conjunction with its 20th anniversary celebration at the Singapore Embassy; with a panel discussion on 21st century multilateralism featuring Ambassador Pickering, Dr Anne-Marie Slaughter, Director of Policy Planning at the State Department and Ambassador Vanu Gopala Menon, Singapore’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations. At a celebratory reception, Deputy Secretary of State Jack Lew joined Stimson Chair Lincoln Bloomfield and Stimson President Ellen Laipson, Stanley Roth, Vice President of International Government Relations, Boeing International and Singapore Ambassador Chan Heng Chee in offering tributes to Ambassador Pickering.
April 21
“Creating a Thinking Nation: How Does the Little Red Dot Do It?” Seminar on Singapore MathThe Singapore Embassy hosted a panel discussion on Singapore’s education system and Singapore math. The panel included Dr Alan Ginsburg, Director of Policy and Program Studies Services of the Department of Education; Dr Susan Sclafani, Director of State Services of the National Center for Education and the Economy; Madge Rosenbaum Goldman, President of the Rosenbaum Foundation and Dr Yeap Ban Har, Assistant Professor in Singapore's National Institute of Education.
The event, which was co-organised by International Enterprise Singapore, also featured the launch of “The Singapore Model Monograph for Learning Mathematics”, by Shane Armstrong, Head of Publishing Group, Marshall Cavendish (the leading publisher of Singapore math books) and Low Khah Gek, Head of Curriculum Planning and Development at the Singapore Education Ministry.
For more information, visit the website of the Ministry of Education and www.singaporemath.com
IE Singapore
IE Singapore
January 21
Chicago Booth Alumni Club of DC’s Economic ForecastThe Singapore Embassy hosted a distinguished panel of economic forecasters, which included David Rubenstein, co-founder and Managing Director of the Carlyle Group, Steven Preston, former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Steven Clemons, Director of the America Strategy Program of the New America Foundation, and Singapore Ambassador Chan Heng Chee.
Dan Dry
Dan Dry
